United States | Anthony Pratt has promised to invest $US1 (€ 0.70)) billion over 10 years in recycling initiatives at his US-based Pratt Industries to tackle global warming as well as boost his bottom line. Mr Pratt is Chairman and CEO of Georgia-based Pratt Industries, the US sister company of his father Dick Pratt's Visy Corp. The Australian businessman unveiled the investment pledge in New York at the celebrity-studded stage at former US president Bill Clinton's third Clinton Global Initiative conference.
The US$1 billion will finance at least three recycled paper mills and four waste-to-energy plants. Using the Clinton forum to help focus attention, Mr Pratt said he hoped to help create a ‘recycling movement’ in the US. He added that recycling of the company's paper and cardboard products such as a pizza boxes was about 55% in the US compared with about 65% in Australia and up to 75% in Japan and Germany.
Pratt Industries is based in Georgia and has operations in 26 states. It is one of the biggest Australian employers of Americans and has more than 3300 workers. During the conference Anthony Pratt admitted the green movement made good business sense for Pratt Industries and was seen as an ‘opportunity’. The investment will go towards several projects including a third recycled paper mill in Shreveport, Louisiana and the company's first waste-to-energy plan to convert wood waste into power at Conyers, Georgia.
Bill Clinton's philanthropic three-day get-together attracted this year actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former US vice-president Al Gore and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The Clinton Global Initiative works towards tackling climate change, poverty, health and education issues across the world. The first two initiatives saw more than US$10 (€7) billion pledged to global causes.
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Herald Sun
